Hi! Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your day-to-day activities?
Ali: Hi, Foodies! My name is Ali Gonzales. I was born and raised in the Bay Area near San Francisco, and Nick and I met back in college over there. In 2016, we decided to become our own bosses and planned to open our own business in his hometown, Jakarta. We started Cold Moo in 2017 and opened our first shop in Jakarta Selatan in early 2018!
On a regular day, I currently spend a good amount of the day playing and taking care of our 1,5-year-old daughter, Bonnie. In addition to taking care of her, I oversee our team and day-to-day operations at the Dharmawangsa location, along with meetings for collaborations and franchising.
Nick: Hi! My name is Nick! Aside from taking care of my daughter Bonnie, I manage the ice cream team. I make sure operations run smoothly and that customers have an enjoyable experience at cold moo.
Tell us about Cold Moo; how did you start it?
Cold Moo is an ice cream store and bakeshop for everybody. In 2018, we started and opened up our first shop in Darmawangsa. We got the idea from an ice cream shop in New York called Kith Treats, where they blend ice cream with cereal. We saw a lot of Gelato shops here and decided Jakarta needed something different. We also developed our Bakeshop menu (chewy cookies and Regal Banana Cream Pudding) since those were American-style desserts we couldn’t find here.
How would you describe your food preference?
Ali: My food preferences are kinda all around. I usually crave KBBQ, Dim Sum, or some good pasta/pizza and steak. I tend to go towards comfort foods that are hearty and love love love spicy foods.
Nick: I think it depends on my mood or the weather outside. If it’s cloudy, I crave a bowl of tempura udon or some Korean soft tofu soup with a side of white rice. On Sundays, I like to eat dim sum. On Saturday mornings, I like to eat Bakmi Ayam.
What is your most recent dining destination that left a good impression? (high-end, upmarket, and street food)
Benihana, the chef who cooked for us, was super entertaining and welcoming. Shout out to Kevin! The food was also delicious!
What is the most unforgettable food experience you have ever had?
ROMA Osteria & Bar is probably my favorite place for Italian food. The Carbonara and the Amatriciana were chef’s kiss. I also really liked the ambiance and service.
What usually attracts you to visit a place to eat?
Usually, recommendations from friends or family. For instance, if I see someone post something that looks good on Instagram, I will most likely check it out.
Do you have any go-to venues for hanging out with friends or maybe for special occasions with family?
Angke Restaurant, Three Buns, Sushi Sei, and Bijin Nabe in Plaza Senayan
What are your favorite local dishes, and where do you go to eat them?
For Sate Ayam we love Sate Ayam Apjay in Panglima Polim! And our favorite Nasi goreng is from Nasgero. We also love Demie Bakmi, Union’s Sop Buntut, Pecel from Pincuk Godong Ijo, and Gado-Gado from Gado-Gado Lely in Kelapa Gading.
Is there any food you can eat every day without getting bored?
Nick: I love the OG chicken nanban from Bansan
Ali: For me it’s the Penne alla vodka from Mozzeria!
Where are your top three dining places that will always be on your favorite list and always come back to?
Roma Osteria & Bar, Fujin Izakaya, and Yima Yila
Do you ever disagree about food? Like where to dine out or what dish you want to cook?
Nick: We don’t really disagree about food; I usually just let Ali pick what we eat or cook. But sometimes it can take forever to decide what we want to eat because there are so many options!
What’s next for Cold Moo?
Aside from the upcoming PIK branch, we want to open a shop in Bali, and we eventually want to open in BSD/Alam Sutera. Hopefully, we can make it work! We are also working on bringing our pints back into production with a new and improved recipe!
